The Twin Core Series: Forgotten
by LisaEPotter
Summary: Trust yourself, they say. But when you've been a prisoner your whole life, you lose your own trust. Tied between two names, Mary struggles to cope with the world which she belongs e's the most dangerous one of her kind, worse than even her parents' murderer. Mary has to learn to trust herself and understand the power of family and friendship to overcome her fears.
1. 31st October 1981

p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="33314609ef648503d45f822393f06fe9"em style="box-sizing: border-box;"span style="box-sizing: border-box; font-weight: bold;"Godric's Hollow, England./span/em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="3accf4eb76e3bd67d11233db4c8ba97f"Amidst the two deaths in the house, an oblivious toddler slept on the newly installed love seat in her parents' bedroom. She loved the comfort it provided and went to rest on it whenever she could. That day, she had sneaked up the stairs unnoticed on her toy broom when her parents and her twin brother occupied the living room. /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="fa6c3ad9b8411a954b3b602859eba449"The broom did not actually possess the power to do anything other than to simply hover a metre above the ground, but somehow Mary had willed it to move forward. It wasn't the first time she had made things of the sort happen, and she wasn't the first in the family either. Both her parents were able to perform magic as well, and they did so on a daily basis./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="6831cf6d037ee1112108562eb48ff186"Mary was awakened by a rumbling voice calling for her. Panicking, she quickly ducked behind the love seat and held her breath. Heavy footsteps creaked on the wooden boards outside the room. They paused. The door flew open rather aggressively; then, it slammed shut, echoing loudly in the frozen air. The footsteps, trailing off, thudded down the stairs./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="9a9fed6af5a2c942dc9dbe5bd40cf357"When she thought it was safe, Mary crept out of her hiding place. She trotted to the front of the room, which somehow seemed unfamiliar. On the floor lay her mother face down and unmoving. Rolling her mother so that she was propped on her back on the fluffy carpet, Mary stared at her still face, confused. Her stomach growled viciously, asking for attention. She nudged the redheaded woman with her little hand, but Lily lay as still as ever./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="7861d8e95bbbe7d7473306f645352a28"Running out of the bedroom, down the wooden stairs and into the living room, where she had left her family earlier, she found her father collapsed on the floor as well./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="d356f0d522f38180f6db415de0c55e1f""Daddy! Daddy, wake up!" she cried impatiently, shaking his limp body. Her little brow creased./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="1172a6d2a85589ca5eb28aec9df4d305"A memory floated to her. She had often watched films with her parents on the "magic picture box" as she called it, and whenever people lay on the ground a man in a white coat pressed his ear on their chest to check for a sound. Copying the movement, she placed her ear on her father's chest, expecting to hear any form of sound. But all she received was silence. Mary failed to understand; her brain clogged up with each passing second. If there was no sound, then that person was "dead"./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="a9ec03394fa130dcec5885f05ef576b5"She stared at her father's sharply-formed yet soft features, his glasses had fallen off his nose and sat innocently on the carpeted floor, as the realisation hit her./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="d3bea5eb99c3617d6cb823f7f2d894b0""Daddy?" she softly said with a quivering voice, hoping her assumption was wrong. Her mum had explained to her that "dead" meant gone forever./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="a2309d6e2b713021518a7b80a3359521""Mary!" /p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="a2309d6e2b713021518a7b80a3359521"A pair of arms swept her up and hugged her tightly. She pushed back the strong, foreign arms as she struggled to break free; however, there was no way out of the steel cage. So, Mary had to resign to the last defence she had left. Making sure her canines pierced through his skin, she bit the man's arm./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="beb8ea00e80c492c989f7205f74fcea0"He released her at once. Jumping over a broken radio, a blue broomstick snapped in half and a beheaded doll, she bolted out of the open front door and stepped into the cold night. The neighbourhood was decorated eerily with glowing jack-o'-lanterns and orange fairy lights. Skeletal hands arose from the lawn of a house nearby as a hanged man dropped down from the far reaches of an apple tree. Yet, surprisingly, the street was deserted; not a single costumed child was in sight, eagerly knocking from door to door, hoping to receive a generous amount of treats to load up their baskets with. She was sure they were there earlier. Close by, a siren blared./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="9009ed9d95ed266f60a84646f33f509e""Harry," she sobbed. The only family she had left had disappeared, and the spooky decorations only added to her fright./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="6e40da9f9f8b0b323ce52515824db6db"Mary ran barefooted on the streets as though searching for her brother and running away from the scary creatures at every turn./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="38d0700aaa4bd06cb5a10068d0867633"Catching the scent of lilies, she stopped short in front of a stone wall fenced house a few streets away from her house. The neighbourhood was called Nightlight Atrium, a rusty signpost revealed, and it was home to middle-class teachers and the elderly, but, of course, Mary knew none of that./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="c35cb5144b09f93e4c80b1e19168684e"In hopes that her mother was somewhere in that house, she earnestly entered the garden of the house. It was colourful even in the dark night although it was not garlanded for the special occasion. It gave off such warming fragrance that Mary momentarily forgot her anguish. She stood in front of a patch of lilies and recalled that her mother used to give her that very flower every morning from her very own garden patch at home./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="be4990c727f977d35d9c76dcfcc1f532"Weary from running, Mary threw herself on a flower bed and soon fell asleep. It was cold, but the first few rays of sun peeked out of the horizon just as the door to the house opened./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="72a4313a477ba7b66eb6d4c433b5aba8"Mrs Tuley, still in her nightgown, came out with a watering can. Not having any children of her own, the young woman treated the flowers and plants that she tended to herself as her children. As she was about to water the flower beds, she caught sight of Mary curled up among the impatiens./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="db43957faa0d3c2c18759447e02a2581"She gave out a start of surprise and dropped the can. It fell on the shimmering, green grass fresh with dew with a dull, low clang./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="9b8a2cc6a6a227c8c2b6665e98b3da98""Oh my...What is this child doing here?" she cried out loud. She picked up little Mary in her arms, very carefully as though Mary were made of glass./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="7910dd909238c0f99470e31a129ce181"Taking her into the house, Mrs Tuley told her husband about her early morning discovery. Mr Tuley, a thoughtful Logician who assessed the situation properly before rushing to rash decisions, looked at the child sleeping comfortably in Mrs Tuley's arms with concern./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="70491a0419c4d70615104de63b025301""What should we do?" he asked uncertainly, more to himself than to his wife. He rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he pondered about it./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="39ba500880cc16ce3c908ddb3a023c92"Mrs Tuley stroked Mary's cheek tenderly. "I want to keep her," she whispered, not wanting to wake the little girl./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="481ff2e91dc361bb7882d7966692c8a1"Mr Tuley had been dreading that she would say that. "Sophia," he said kindly," We can't keep her just, yet. What if she is lost and her parents are looking for her? We need to call the authorities."/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="02c375fd1dd3f4cb1e50efaf9b094ade""But -," Mrs Tuley tried to protest./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="e1eb94944d169fbb60b01c9d72467dc8""We don't have any choice, Sophie," he said solemnly./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="d06b6150686e9ec45730edc3dc09230a"Mrs Tuley looked at the girl cradled in her arms. She was so close to having a child of her own, but she could not bear to think of hurting the girl's true parents for the sake of her freshly-awakened motherly spirits. No, keeping the child without an investigation would not be what a good mother would do. Sadly, she agreed with Mr Tuley, who called the authorities./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="bacd7fa5a76e8006d65be28c4f8e269b"The child would probably have to go, but there was still a chance she was an orphan. If she was, Mrs Tuley decided she would adopt her. Secretly, she wished the girl was an orphan. She did not realise how right she was./p 


	2. Chapter 1 - Ghosts

p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="9d05b984e495e301d9e39094724a3cd3"Mrs Tuley tucked little Mary in the warm blue blanket in the crib adorned with artificial flowers and vines woven around the wooden railings and grilles. The crib had been purchased when Mrs Tuley had supposedly been expecting a child; however, after the truth finally came out, it had been stashed away in the cupboard under the stairs, dust clinging to it as the years wore on./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="f36f6e14dcd2913b79227aa3c2acc18e"It had been brought to the living room with Mrs Tuley's consent, who generally teared up at the sight of the object that had once held such promises for a glorious future. Though, this time, she shed not a single tear. With joy sparkling in her kind, blue eyes, she had dusted and cleaned the crib until it shone./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="2bba6c85201966b3f20e5f18404e7ea8"A soft mattress of a very thick folded quilt she had sewn herself had been thrown over in the wooden inside of the cot. A small, baby blue oval pillow, on which puffs of cottony clouds had been stitched by a steady hand, had been placed on top of the quilt. Only, after all, this was done, Mary had been gingerly lowered inside. During the cleaning, she had dozed on the sofa, curled up like a kitten, hugging a fluffy cushion./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="3f9395dbb8ea8b2b902cc58170819c0f"Even though her husband retreated to bed, Mrs Tuley hadn't had the heart to do the same. Normally, after she watered her plants at sunrise, she would return to bed for a few more hours before starting the day, but now she sat in the living room looking at Mary warmly until she nodded off./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="e99e4fa542f61241b55ac9fb08a01b35"A few hours later, Mary's emerald green eyes fluttered open. She sat up and examined her surroundings. Everything was so unfamiliar. The dim room, lighted only by the rays of sunshine streaming through the heavy curtains, seemed as huge as a desert. The floorboards were granite tiles, the walls covered with light green paper. There were three doors on three different walls - the front door, the kitchen door and the door leading to the stairwell. A different house plant sat on a tall, three-legged metal stool next to each door./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="4ce643cdaa5c27f65a7596ba0f83c559"The room was littered with furniture. A long, three-seater sofa, on which reclined an alien, and two armchairs all sat on the carpeted floor like a group of gossiping schoolgirls around a glass tea table. The fireplace lacked logs of wood and the mantelpiece was garnished by cold awards and achievements. Where had she ended up?/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="76957fa22a80be08aab674325b2afacf""Mum?" she squeaked, fear building up inside her, clasping her hands tightly./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="59c5de5aa0f69179290521784a499810"Mrs Tuley, a light sleeper, abruptly woke up to the sound. Her eyes fell on the frightened girl, and she hastily jumped to her feet and moved towards the cot to comfort her./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="a9792ab268d257208d467e0bf6e84a75""It's alright, dear," she soothed in a voice as sweet as honey, as warm as a blazing fire in a cold winter's night, as soft as one's bed after a tiring day./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="c1071735b16e85aff2bd8f8e882e4cf1"Mary blinked at her in surprise, then frowned./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="763c45d1a318d23fe6b26f4bac38ea35""Where Mum?" she asked. Her head hurt, hammered by an entire flock of non-existent birds, and flashes of terrifying memories flew in front of her eyes; the flashes included a lot of green light and the withdrawal of the green light in her mother's eyes, leaving them dead emeralds./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="42d0da8000270d4ceefd15de975625a2"em style="box-sizing: border-box;"Her parents' corpses, her missing brother./em/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="4f424eb1e67ff1e50e436e76c612ed0b""Your mother? I don't know, child. Where did you come from?" asked Mrs Tuley gently as to not overwhelm the child. She did not really expect an answer./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="04da2a06683ac85a1a13101392d03e4b"Mary's face screwed up as she tried to remember. She had often heard her mother talking about the place she lived in. It was something to do with 'Hollow'./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="b6796a2ae3f04fd53f88983c6f09e88a""Hollow?" whispered Mary uncertainly, peering at the woman before her curiously./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="3c2d024e2c1ae13ef4022405aed2206a""Hollow," Mrs Tuley repeated. "But you are still in Godric's Hollow, dear. Wait here, I shall go get you something to eat."/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="f527ab2b45a3589572802927a2f00fc9"Mary shook her dark, messy mane of hair. "Not hungwy."/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="9235c517118289fde8083d0ae717ad5c"But Mrs Tuley would hear none of it. "You should eat something. I'll get you some bread dipped in boiled milk," she said as she disappeared into the kitchen./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="b7d71a0b74bccab2f00a9d2158a5f15d"Tears rolled down Mary's rosy cheeks. She regretted running away from home, but there had been an invader, her offender. She hadn't recognised him at the time. Yet, now, as she tried to recall the incident, her brain compressed in pain as though trying to screw itself in a tiny phial. Pressing her hands to her temples, Mary shrieked./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="703090dd9006d4f3bdb2513cf786119a"The railings of the crib parted to one side to make enough room for her to slip out. Her pastel pink frock was a crumpled mess; mud clung to her bare feet. She looked in no way like the well-cared for child of the Potters./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="656e1f57705234e210174f018d5543d0"She walked to the front door and tried to reach out to open it, but the door knob was too high for her small height. If only she had a broom...She noticed the cat flap, which was unusually large - large enough for her to escape through./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="905c1821218aa857afbc200d4dafc9d3"On the porch of the Tuleys' house, Mary's eyes swept through the garden, searching for something familiar. The lilies in the garden caught her attention and she ran to them./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="f08dfa30ef07b9fa727a308a4d2c4195"Every morning, her mother had presented her with a lily, which was normally clipped to her hair. Mary would run about the house, showing off the lilies to everyone else. Lilies held a very significant spot in Mary's life. Her love for them was inexplicable. Then again, love is inexplicable./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="072e433235d73f481725ef56a989ae47"She threw herself on the flowerbed and cried her heart out. She wanted her mummy, but her mummy was "gone forever" with her daddy. But why did they have to leave her alone? She felt so lost, muddled up in the aftermath of their deaths...and her brother? Where was he? He couldn't be gone forever too.../p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="2ae6bc9621ec58be48cdd971ecdf6e86""Mary, don't cry, dear," her mother's voice comforted./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="bf061436bad672c774acdcbf62856380"Immediately, Mary stopped crying and looked up, expecting to see her mum. She wasn't disappointed. A silvery pale, translucent figure stood before her: Lily Potter. The form stood right in front of the little girl, who raised her head inquiringly./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="a0f45948a6cad58dd14a40f3ced795a6""Mummy!" exclaimed Mary with joy as she jumped up and hugged Lily, who scooped her up in her arms. The young girl breathed in the sweet smell of her mother, the scent of lilies, and a wave of security washed over her. "Daddy!"/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="5179c6399ffe8b3e6e8dcfab1e2b0b11"James Potter, beaming, stood just behind his wife. "Be brave, my little lioness," he said, ruffling up his daughter's hair./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="1bb5945363e31fb251033442b4c15f5d""Where Harry?" Mary asked anxiously. She tried to see past Lily's shoulder to see if her brother stood there, but he seemed to be nowhere in sight./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="0cc00515a49ff14a24ed581f262dafd0""He's a long way off, Mary," explained Lily slowly. "He's safe. I want you to stay with the good people of this house until it's time, OK?"/p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="d85e1235ea73a2b8a6383b59c7e9a1d2""O-cake." Mary nodded, rubbing her wet eyes./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="2ffbb235d1878d34441fa0fe2902f69d"Lily and James chuckled. "We'll always be with you, even if you can't see us," said James firmly. His silver eyes were sincere and honest. Mary wondered why they weren't hazel-brown anymore./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="d126217de4b65c82eeb703e6769af20d"He took her from Lily's arms and placed her on top of the bed of lilies. Then, both he and his wife faded./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="55073f419824c90481b4673f6f122009""MUMMY! DADDY!" shouted Mary, but there was no answer. She was met by nothing but the chirping of birds as they tweeted to each other about the events of the previous night and the sorrowful woes of the little girl sitting amongst the fresh lilies. Some hopped onto the stone wall and peered at her curiously, singing songs of pain and loss; fear and dread./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="5c987c10ced3f1771807980ff4e6f7f2"The front door of the Tuleys' house flew open. Mrs Tuley ran to Mary and took her inside while wondering how she got out of the crib. The toddler sobbed uncontrollably as her breakfast was placed in front of her and Mrs Tuley fed her and endeavoured to coax her./p  
p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 24px; font-family: 'Source Sans Pro', 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; line-height: 24px; font-size: 18px; padding: 0px; color: #555555;" data-p-id="d41d8cd98f00b204e9800998ecf8427e" /p  
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	3. Chapter 2 - A Surprise

On a cold July night, when everyone in Nightlight Atrium was in bed, a dark haired adventure-spirited girl sneaked out of her house and flew about the garden on a rather forlorn, rusty broomstick. To her, it was not unusual at all to do this, but it was her adoptive parents she was hiding from. They did not like her doing odd things, at least, things odd to them, and being airborne on a mere piece of wood was one of the most unusual things they had ever experienced or would have experienced if they had known; for knowing their demeanour, the girl hid this uncanny ability of hers. She did not wish for all the brooms in the house to be locked away in the shed: they were her last resort for being herself.

Mary had always been shut out from the rest of the world by the stone wall around the Tuleys' house because she was different. The Tuleys wanted to 'protect her from the outside world who would never accept her'. So, Mary became a prisoner in her house, but this hadn't always been her house. She had remembered snatches of her past life before she stumbled across the Tuleys garden lost. Most of the time these snatches occurred in the night when her mind was at rest or should have been at rest if it weren't for these very snatches. As important as they were, these recollections were rather unpleasant, which made her wonder if her past life had been rough like her nightmares.

Mary knew she was adopted, but it did not matter to her much as long as she had the love of her adoptive parents, which came aplenty. However, that did not mean that she did not want to see her real family. She yearned to know of them, what they had been like, if they had loved her, if they were still searching for her, if they still walked the earth - the questions were endless, but lacked answers. Thus, they were all gathered in a fist and shut away in a locked box at the back of her mind.

As she flew past the lilies, the sudden appearance of a tall figure at the gate made Mary swerve and hit the stone wall forcefully. She lost balance and fell off, walloping the ground. Wincing in pain as she lightly touched a graze on her arm, Mary got up to see the man approaching her. She glanced at the gate, which had been bolted shut meticulously by Mrs Tuley herself both in fear of burglars and a night time wandering on Mary's part. The bolt was tight in place; however, it only drew more questions to the arrival of the strange man.

"Who are you?" she choked out in fear, her voice brimming with a strong Scottish accent. Taking a light stance so that she could move with agility if it were called for by circumstances, she held out the broom in front of her in defence.

"Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore," he replied, pronouncing each word thoroughly to let it sink in, as he surveyed her through his half-moon spectacles. The man was oddly dressed in midnight blue robes sprinkled with pale moondust on the hem that glimmered to resemble tiny stars in a night sky and a matching wizard's hat equally star-adorned. His silvery hair was so long that it was neatly tucked in his jet-black belt. "Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, more commonly known as Professor Dumbledore."

"What are you doing here this late?" She didn't dare say that her parents were asleep lest the man try anything funny and kidnap her for a large ransom, which the Tuleys would not be able to afford, and she would die of starvation in the dank cellar full of foul odours and rot.

Professor Dumbledore ignored the question. Instead, he made a simple statement which changed Mary's whole life. She would later wonder if it was indeed a good change or a bad one, but that matter is for later. "You're a witch, Mary."

"I'm a what?" she cried out, all thought about sweets offered as bait forgotten as she marched over red-faced to the intruder.

It was true that she was very different from others - the main reason she was isolated from everyone else - but she possibly couldn't be a witch. It all seemed like a bad joke: she had never practiced black magic to harm anyone. She knew Mr. and Mrs. Tuley wanted the best for her, but she had to admit living like that wasn't exactly healthy. She was an unwanted loner. Her only companions were the beautiful flowers in the garden that were never the best friends you could come by.

"I'm sorry. I know I'm very different, but I don't want to be called a witch," Mary declared haughtily. Suddenly, her vanity evaporated; it occurred to her that the man had addressed her correctly with her name. "How do you know my name?"

Professor Dumbledore chuckled. "Let me clear things up. Being a witch is not a bad thing as long as you do not stray to the Dark path," he explained. "Your name has been placed on admission at Hogwarts since the moment the first flicker of life rose in you and you entered the world, breathing in the first puff of air your lungs took up by themselves unaided."

The next two hours were spent in an explanation of witches and wizards and their hidden world, that and answering the few hundred questions Mary bombarded Professor Dumbledore with as they were seated on the chairs on the patio. He was patient with her, for he knew it was tough for her to register all the new information.

"So, were my parents wizards?" Mary mumbled, all her fear of the man evaporated. "Do you know them? Are they still alive? Am I really an orphan?"

Professor Dumbledore sighed. He had to give the grave news to the girl. She had the right to know about her past. "I'm not entirely clear on who your parents are, but I have a pretty good assumption. If they are who I think they are, then I am afraid you are indeed an orphan. I am still waiting for confirmation from the Ministry."

Mary licked her dried lips. She must have known this. How often had this thought come to her little head, but she turned it down in hopes it was false. "How did they...?" Her voice trailed off. She could not bring herself to say the dreaded words.

"They were killed by the darkest wizard of all times: Lord Voldemort, he calls himself," he said casually, as though he gave away such information every day. Perhaps he did.

She asked with a light tone of nervousness,"When am I going to Hogwarts?"

"Well, here, read this letter. It's for you." Dumbledore handed Mary a yellowed envelope - which smelled quite like parchment - with a queer purple seal. She opened it carefully and two slips of parchment - she was sure this time - fell out. She opened one to read its contents.

 _'Dear Miss Tuley,_

 _We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment._

 _Term begins on 1st September. We await your owl by no later than 31st July._

 _Yours sincerely,_

 _Minerva McGonagall.'_

Next she scanned through the list enclosed with the letter with eyes as round as coins. All this felt too good to be true. She was going to be free at last. She was going to be with people like her! She would no longer be a freak. Her happiness and excitement were too much for her to bear sitting. Unable to help it, Mary jumped up and twirled around in ecstasy. She made exclamations of her sheer joy that caused Professor Dumbledore to smile.

At last, when he decided that she had enough expression of her pleasure for the time being, Professor Dumbledore made a statement that she should leave at once for the shopping, and she will be accompanied by two other people, one of whom was very much like her in his ignorance.

Startled by the suggestion to leave at so late an hour and without the consent of her guardians, Mary inquired why she would have to leave at once.

"Do you think they would let you leave if all this was explained to them?" he challenged although it didn't sound much like a reprimand. His tone was always calm.

It was true that they were overprotective, but to let her remain in solitary prison when there was a place where she belonged to seemed pretty far-fetched. Yet, how _would_ they react to this? They would probably disbelief the whole thing coming from the mouth of a stranger. Now, that Mary thought about it, how could she trust this man was speaking the truth? For all she knew, this was all a well-played hoax.

Professor Dumbledore seemed to read that particular train of thought on her face. He took out a wooden stick that he called his wand and muttered something caused a lily as red as her true mother's hair fall on Mary's lap.

Amazed, she tenderly picked it up and smelled it. That flower had brought memories of her wonderful past before the great misfortune had overcome. Now, here was her proof that everything the man had been saying was true. There was a Hogwarts, and it was to be her new home.

"I will go, now," Mary whispered as though speaking out loud would break all hopes that this wasn't a dream, "but will I return?"

"As soon as your shopping is done, by the time of which I would have convinced your parents to let you go," he answered. In truth, he wanted her to bond with her companions for the shopping trip, especially the young boy of the same age as her. "By the way, Mary, happy birthday."

Mary turned her attention away from the flower. "What? Is it my _real_ birthday today? I never knew when it was, but we always celebrate on Halloween, the day I was found here, but for some reason I am never happy that day. I don't feel the joy of my birthday. Perhaps, it was because it _wasn't_ my birthday."

"Perhaps," Professor Dumbledore agreed. "But perhaps because that is the death anniversary of your actual parents."

The blow hit Mary like the sharp wind on a cold January night. Never had she imagined this. She had hardly imagined any of this!

Slowly getting up, Mary sneaked into the house and rescued a small, beaded mailbag, in which reposed a small sum of money she had saved up, she had made herself. She intended to put her shopping articles in there - whatever would fit.

"So, where am I going?" she wondered out loud as she smoothened the ruffled up skirt of her black, sleeveless dress that was white and bore netted floral patterns till just above the chest.

"Diagon Alley."


End file.
